British travellers could save £2.7 billion this year on the value of spending money on holiday and business trips to the EU due to the strength of sterling, a new report estimates.
The analysis is based on the pound now being worth around 13.8% more against the euro than it was at this time in 2013.
The study by travel money business Centtrip reveals the UK spends around £19.56 billion a year when on overseas trips to the EU.
If the valuation of sterling against the euro remains the same this year when compared to two years ago, travellers could spend £2.7 billion less in 2015 and have more or less the same spending power as in 2013.
A total of 42.5 million trips are made to the European Union every year, around 73% of the total number of trips abroad. Of the £34.9 billion spent abroad, 56% of this is in the EU.
However, the company estimates that banks and travel money companies make around £698 million in ‘spreads’ when people use credit, debit and prepaid currency cards abroad, or when buying foreign currency. This is because its research reveals that the average forex spread when using plastic to buy abroad is more than 2%.
Centtrip co-founder and managing director, Brian Jamieson, said: “Sterling’s strength against the euro is great news for UK consumers and businesses alike when they visit the EU.
“However, we estimate that on average, people pay around £11.9 in foreign exchange ‘spreads’ on their spending money per trip whilst abroad. People need to pay more attention to the ‘charges’ they incur every time they spend or buy something abroad.”